


Bucky Barnes and Dogs

by JTHM_Michi



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Bucky Barnes Recovering, Gen, Past Bucky Barnes/Steve Rogers, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-16
Updated: 2015-07-16
Packaged: 2018-04-09 17:00:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4357184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JTHM_Michi/pseuds/JTHM_Michi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bucky Barnes likes dogs. Even after the Soldier, he finds that's an easy thing of the old him to reclaim - he likes dogs.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bucky Barnes and Dogs

**Author's Note:**

> Trigger warning for one moment where the Winter Soldier is ordered to kill a dog. It's the shortest "During" in this one-shot. Marked by a * so you can skip that.

**Before**

Gabe is sneaking the mutt a scrap of food scrounged up from somewhere while Pegs and Steve are pouring over maps and other bits of intelligence. The cameras are finally gone and Jim and Dernier are doing gods knows what in a huddle. DumDum is reclined behind Bucky, hat covering his eyes in apparent sleep. Jimmy is nowhere to be seen.

“Where’s Falsworth?” He asks no one in particular. The mutt’s ears perk up at his voice, head swiveling to look at him.

“Getting some leads; why you need someone to hold you hand while you nap, Barnes?” Pegs says, looking over her shoulder to smirk at him. Steve gives a long-suffering sigh like he has any right while Bucky grins at her cockily.

“Maybe I do or maybe I just want a cuddle, you offering, Carter?” He snipes back. She laughs, turning back to Steve.

“You two are ridiculous.” Steve says quietly, knowing they can hear him just fine.

Bucky stands to stretch out, cracking his neck, and when he looks down the mutt is sitting in front of him. He’s a gangly thing, paws still too big for him, fur muddy and more brown all over than perhaps he should be, but he’s got big brown eyes and floppy ears that are used to beg for food and scratches. His tail is wagging and Bucky reaches down to pet his head. He leans into it easily, trustingly. 

In New York, back when Steve was small and frail, their little apartment building had a dog that belonged to the landlord. Sometimes when rent was short because Steve got sick or hurt they were allowed to make up the difference by giving the dog a bath and taking her out on walks. She hated baths and hated being lead around by a leash, but she liked Steve and she’d cuddle up to him when Bucky was at work in the winter and not there to keep him warm.

He likes dogs. They’re simple creatures and love everyone, no questions asked.

“I don’t have any food to give ya, sorry bud.” He says and gives the dog one last pet before stepping around him to go over to Pegs and Steve.

He’s slept enough for now, might as well see what they need of him. And try to talk them out of whatever fool thing they’re planning to do.

* * *

 

**During**

The target is at home, eating dinner with his wife - _no training in hand to hand, doesn’t know where the guns are kept, meek and quiet, no threat_ \- and two children - _oldest is trained in hand to hand, passable with a knife, no threat if from a distance; youngest is mute and deaf no threat_. There is a large German Shepard laying down by the door - _sharp teeth, heavy bulk, fast runner, good tracking from scent alone, heightened senses, low threat_ \- and the Asset lines up the shot.

The target is neutralized and the German Shepard leaps to his feet, herding the youngest out of her chair and to the ground while the wife and son yell and panic.

The asset collapses his weapon and heads to the meeting point.

* * *

 

**After**

There’s something wrong with his arm - _there’s a lot wrong with his arm_ \- but he can’t go anywhere to get it fixed. He doesn’t want to go back to the chair and forget. _James Barnes was born in New York City in the spring of1917. Bucky Barnes was born later, when a little boy with a rattle in his chest and a stubborn streak a mile wide smiled at him for the first time.  
_

There’s a box further down the alley making noises. Or, rather, there are noises coming from inside it. Noises can be dangerous - _He wakes when something creaks and two men in tactical gear rush him; he stabs them in the neck and eye respectively, twists a gun from one of them and kills the other five_ \- but they can also be harmless - _the children are laughing and screaming and the sun is shining and his arm hurts_.

He holds the knife in one hand - his actual hand, the flesh one that doesn’t hurt and still can form a full fist - and inches forward. The noises are small and weak, probably harmless, and when he gets to the box it’s just puppies.

_Rebecca Barnes was born in the winter of 1931. He misses her birth because he’s - because -  
_

There’s four of them, but when he kneels to touch them three of them are stiff with rigor mortis. The last one is weak and pale, squeaking and shivering. When he picks it up, its mouth goes around one of his metal fingers and he can’t feel it. He holds it against his chest, standing still.

_“Are you really that selfish?! I forbid it James, absolutely forbid it! Your sister’s need that money, you are not taking food out of their mouths for that - “_

_“It’s MY money to do with what I will and Steve needs his medicine! I’ll have plenty left over for you all, I don’t see what the big deal is!”_

It’s so small and probably starving. It’ll die here, just like it’s siblings, all alone and no one will know.

He’s not sure why that bothers him so much.

* * *

 

***During*  
**

The asset is sitting in the chair, giving the briefing, when more men come in. The asset doesn’t stop talking.

They bring in a small dog on a leash and give the Asset a gun. The asset doesn’t stop talking.

“Shoot the dog.”

The asset shoots the dog and continues the briefing.

* * *

 

**Before**

“Millie, mom is not going to let you keep him.” Bucky tells his little sister.

“Keep who?” Mildred asks airily, trying to act like she and their other sister Ruth aren’t holding a blanket over a small puppy who is treating their “clever” hiding as a game. He arches an eyebrow at her, unimpressed.

“Aw, c’mon Buck, didn’t you see him? He was so cute.” Steve says from next to Ruth because he’s an enabler.

“We can’t afford a dog.” Bucky says, rubbing at the side of his right eye. He’s already doing the mental math and he can probably afford a month’s worth of dog food if they don’t buy any fruit, flour, and no cinema for the month. He can’t use the fourteen dollars he has saved up, that’s for next month’s medicine for Steve. Meaning he’s going to have to tell Sue that he can’t make their date.

Steve pulls the blanket back, revealing the small Cocker Spaniel he had caught a glimpse of before his sisters had yanked a blanket over it. The dog is cute, of course, and jumps up to lick Steve’s face a few times before getting gently pushed away. Ruth leans up on her knees to haul the dog onto her lap and leans into Steve to look up at Bucky with huge, begging eyes.

“Please, Bucky??” Ruth asks and makes her bottom lip tremble. Steve wraps an arm around her - when Ruth gets her growth spurt she’ll be just as tall as Steve - and Bucky sighs.

“I’ll run it by mom.”

Mildred tosses Ruth a smug grin and Steve smiles at him in a way that makes Bucky’s insides do that inappropriate wiggle thing he’s been trying to train himself out of.

“C’mon, Steve, Becca awaits us. She’s been buggin’ me all day for drawing lessons.”

* * *

 

**After**

Steve finds him or James waits for him, he’s not real sure at this point which it is. Nux growls softly at him, hair raised and teeth showing, and James puts a hand on her neck to calm her down.

“He’s cute.” Steve says, staring at the dog to avoid looking at him.

“She’s a good girl. She takes care of me.” He says softly in answer. Nux isn’t growling anymore, but she’s still in front of him and tense. He wishes she was still a puppy and small enough for him to scoop her up and hold her with one arm, but she’s bigger now and his arm can’t take her weight anymore. The metal one hurts, all the time now. He’s used to it.

“Bucky.” Steve’s voice cracks like it did when he had to talk at his mamma’s funeral. But he’s not Bucky anymore, he can’t be, Bucky died falling from a train.

“You here to take me in?” James asks. Nux presses against his legs and he reaches down to pet her.

“I’m here to take you home.” Steve says,

James knows Natalia is here - _she was such a small thing, all red hair and teeth and then she was a girl and opening her shirt and he showed her what kind of gun could fit between her breasts and how to conceal a bigger one on her hip_ \- and probably Stark is nearby, listening in. That seems to be what Stark does wherever Steve is concerned, stick his nose into everything.

“Can Nux come?” He asks and he’s tired. He sleeps better now, gets at least four hours of sleep before he wakes up and can’t go back to sleep, but he’s still so tired all the time. His arm hurts, a low buzz in the back of his mind and he can’t move it all that well. It doesn’t bend at the elbow anymore and mostly hangs at his side useless. Nux uses it to wake him up if he’s having a bad dream, uses it to steer him if he’s having trouble with himself when he’s awake. He’s just tired.

“Yeah, yeah she can come.” Steve says and takes a step forward, eyes bright and watery. He looks so hopeful.

_He signs Steve’s name on the paper and prints the address they live at on the lines. He thinks of his mother and how upset she’s going to be, knowing that he’s doing this, but she’s got a job and Steve…Steve needs someone to take care of him and Bucky can do that. It’s not like he’s gonna need his pay inna warzone and if the worst should happen he wants Steve to be taken care of. His girls will be fine but it’s his boy he’s worried about - his stupid, stubborn, small, frail boy.  
_

“Okay.”

**Author's Note:**

> "His name is James Falsworth!"  
> Jimmy is a nickname of James and I think Bucky was big on nicknames. I know what his name is, chil.  
> "Her name is Peggy Carter!"  
> Well, actually, her name is Margret Carter, but Peggy is her preferred nickname. As is Pegs a nickname of Peggy and if you think Bucky and Peggy didn't get along you are wrong.  
> "Why was Peggy even with the Commandos in that first scene?"  
> Cause I firmly believe that she went on a few missions with them a few times and Agent Carter supports that. I have all sorts of headcanons where occasionally Peggy was with the Commandos when units that had cameras for propaganda footage for back home came through and they all edited her out. Steve insisted they all include Jim and Gabe, cause he didn't give a flying fuck that technically they shouldn't be in his unit cause of segregation and shit, they were heroes and by god were people going to know about it. But Peggy often told Steve that she was okay with being cut out and edited - it gave her the element of surprise if people didn't know the Commandos had a woman with them occasionally and she worked best from the background anyway. So, that's why she's there.


End file.
